Motor Scooters Banned at Venice Boardwalk, Bike Path

Cracking down on a fad, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday voted unanimously to ban motorized scooters on the Venice Beach bike path and boardwalk.

The ban is the first of its kind in Los Angeles. Last year, the state Legislature passed a law permitting the motorized scooters on bike paths and in bike lanes unless specifically prohibited by local ordinance. Council members are studying the possibility of banning the popular scooters in other crowded city areas.

Councilwoman Ruth Galanter, who pushed for the Venice Beach ordinance, told her colleagues that the proliferation of the motorized scooters in recent months has “created a risk to public health and safety on both the bike path and the nearby Ocean Front Walk.”

“Scooter operators bob and weave through foot and bicycle traffic at breakneck speeds, causing collisions on a regular basis,” said Galanter, whose motion passed with a 12-0 vote.

Carol Berman, a longtime Venice Beach resident, also urged the council to act.

“This is one of the greatest beaches in the world,” Berman said. “It’s got something for everyone, but it shouldn’t have everything for everyone. . . .

“You get these motorized scooters, and they scoot along as if they are in the grand prix. . . . This is just not the place.”

But news of the ban was met with boos Wednesday at Venice Beach.

“They should have let people like me voice their opinion, at least,” grumbled Jay Cabrera--who was riding his $500 gasoline-powered scooter along the bike path at Windward Avenue.

“I’ve never hurt anybody riding this, never hit anybody,” said the 26-year-old Hawthorne mechanic who has used his scooter as his primary mode of transportation since his driver’s license was suspended for a motorcycle infraction.

Venice Boardwalk scooter rental shop owner Antonio Rendon suggested that those upset with motorized scooters are irritated by the lawnmower-sound the tiny engines make.

Rendon owns a dozen motorized scooters and rents them out for $20 per hour. He has about eight customers a weekday and double that number on weekends.

His customers sign a form outlining basic safety rules and are given helmets to wear before they leave, he said. “We hear of little mishaps--people taking a fall off them in the sand. But we haven’t heard of anybody being hit. I think people hear the motor noise and think it’s polluting the air.”